The moment the Creator Deity manifested in the heavens, Aiden instantly sensed the surrounding environment subtly shifting.
Something imperceptible to the eyes yet unmistakable to the soul——
A divine radiance?
Even the proud Sinnoh trio—upon noticing His presence—immediately lowered their noble heads, daring not meet His gaze.
But——
Aiden lifted his head—studying the luminous, world-embodying Creator Deity Arceus for a long moment—before swiftly reaching a conclusion.
Indeed—this one is a "counterfeit."
He had no special evidence for this judgment—only a gut feeling that this emotionless, machine-like entity starkly contrasted with his imagined Arceus.
Not the Arceus I like—rejected outright!
Thus—while the Sinnoh trio and Lake Guardians all bowed in humble reverence——
Aiden took another bold step forward.
And in response to his seemingly presumptuous action—the "Creator Deity" gazing down at him offered no reaction whatsoever.
Aiden swiftly traversed the 999 steps—arriving before Him.
In that instant——
The entire path to the Hall of Origin—including Arceus and Aiden—vanished completely.
Aiden seemed to lose consciousness for a fleeting moment.
When he opened his eyes again—only sacred radiance filled his vision—as if someone had detonated a flashbang directly before him.
He immediately squeezed his eyes shut.
Simultaneously—he roughly deduced his current location.
The Hall of Origin—said to be the special space where Arceus was born… and where He ultimately slumbered.
But in such a light-polluted environment… could Arceus truly sleep soundly?
As if sensing his thought—the ambient light promptly dimmed.
He cautiously reopened his eyes.
No flashbang this time—but what he saw still jolted him.
Before Aiden stretched an infinite expanse of starry cosmos.
Had he not felt solid ground beneath his feet—and air filling his lungs—he might have believed Arceus had exiled him to the void as punishment for his earlier irreverence——
Aiden began seriously pondering: Just how did I offend that alpaca to deserve this dramatic entrance sequence?
And at that moment——
"As the first guest to visit the Hall of Origin… your thoughts continually surprise me."
A mature female voice—laced with faint exasperation yet tinged with amusement—echoed from the void.
"No need for tension. As the origin of all universes… this is the Hall of Origin's true form."
???
Wait—sister, who's speaking?
Only Arceus makes sense… right?
Aiden's mind went blank. He instinctively scanned his surroundings—but found no trace of Arceus's form.
"Tsk—"
In that moment—he suddenly recalled datamined scrapped content.
Arceus had once taken human female form—engaging in a romantic relationship with a human… leaving behind the image of a "widow"——
Could it be—?
As if sensing his absurd speculation—the Creator Deity lightly flicked his forehead. Aiden instinctively clutched the spot.
"Merely borrowing an old friend's voice… I thought it might make you feel more at ease."
"But it seems… you're actually less comfortable this way."
"No no no—this is perfectly fine!"
Aiden immediately waved toward the empty air—while confirming his suspicion: This one's the real deal!
Logically—the lofty, radiant alpaca above should've seemed more authentic.
But Aiden trusted his instincts.
Simultaneously—another question arose within him: "Have we… met before?"
Knowing Arceus could read his thoughts—he voiced it directly.
The voice from beyond the world fell silent for a moment.
"How perceptive you are, Aiden."
Though not explicitly confirming—it heavily implied the answer.
As expected!
Only now did Aiden fully validate his suspicion.
He truly did share a connection with Arceus!
His conjecture had been subtle—even bordering on illogical.
But ever since arriving in Sinnoh and encountering other Legendary beings—he'd vaguely sensed this truth.
Even Cynthia had shown clear nervousness upon first meeting Uxie. As for the Time-Space dragons and Giratina—far more so.
Yet Aiden couldn't comprehend such feelings at all.
Thus—eliminating the possibility he'd met them before—the answer became simple:
Even if he couldn't remember—he must have once encountered a being above the Lake Guardians and Sinnoh trio… explaining his ease in their presence.
And clearly—only the Creator Deity Arceus satisfied this condition.
What began as an unrealistic notion—upon actually meeting Arceus's avatar and contacting His true form—left Aiden utterly unperturbed.
Even Arceus Himself had ignored his numerous irreverent thoughts—clearly long accustomed to him.
And Arceus's response now further validated his deduction.
Therefore——
"Though I don't know what happened before… but my transmigration to the Pokémon world is definitely tied to you, Arceus!"
"Indeed so."
The voice from the void returned—but this time He posed a question:
"Aiden… do you believe this world aligns with your expectations of a Pokémon world?"
This time—His tone carried unmistakable gravity.
Without hesitation, Aiden replied: "Of course. If a world with Pokémon exists… it should be exactly like this—one where humans and Pokémon coexist joyfully, trusting one another."
"—Is that so?"
Arceus's tone held faint surprise—yet also a warmth Aiden couldn't quite decipher.
"Then—as compensation for inviting you to this world…"
"Your wish… appears to have been fulfilled."
???
Clearly—Aiden didn't grasp His meaning.
And Arceus—apparently unwilling to explain—quickly posed another question:
"Aiden… why do you assume a world with Pokémon is the special one?"
"Have you considered… perhaps the 'reality' you remember is actually the anomalous world that shouldn't exist?"
This time—Aiden truly froze.
For a moment—his brain felt like it was smoking.
Fortunately—Arceus wasn't a riddler—riddle-alpaca—and soon revealed fragments of "Aiden's" story.
"In your understanding—I am the Creator who forged countless parallel universes. And this is indeed accurate."
"Primordially—existence was pure chaos. Until I descended upon the Hall of Origin—separating a space from the void—creating the first universe—and attempting to establish order, to create life."
"All things came into being through Me. The world's laws were born of Me."
"I exist within all things."
"I… am the eternal, unchanging 'One' of this world."
Hearing His slightly chuuni opening monologue—Aiden nodded.
In the Pokémon worldview—only Arceus truly qualified to speak such words.
Sensing his thought—Arceus fell silent briefly—His voice losing some of its earlier enthusiasm.
"Yet soon—I grew weary of this unchanging world."
"As long as I remained within it—the guardians of order would forever adhere to rules I established."
"So I departed the original world."
"And precisely because of this willful act—new changes emerged within existence."
"Countless lives' divergent choices guided the world toward infinite unknown futures and possibilities."
"From the origin universe—ever more new worlds bloomed from chaos. And I—as an observer beyond worlds—embraced this outcome with joy."
Arceus's voice paused—giving Aiden an opening to interject:
"So—this is why you left this world?"
"But the timeline doesn't quite match…"
He posed this bold question—yet Arceus took no offense.
Naturally—He also chose not to address it—continuing His monologue unperturbed.
Aiden could only silently endure this alpaca's "important address."
"Under My observation—countless worlds developed in parallel… yet soon new problems emerged."
"For instance—many worlds' futures evolved into extreme polarities."
"Pokémon and humans… seemed capable of coexisting only one at a time."
"In worlds without humans—Pokémon fought endlessly… ultimately causing total world collapse."
"And in worlds without Pokémon——humans… did not live particularly happily either."
"So I began pondering——"
"If the absence of either renders the world dull… why do most worlds still repeat one of these two futures?"
"The turning point arrived when I finally discovered a sufficiently intriguing world."
Arceus's tone paused again—while Aiden sensed a pair of eyes now fixed upon him.
"In that world—no creatures called 'Pokémon' existed. Yet many humans yearned for their presence."
"And those who yearned for Pokémon——at least for one fleeting moment… genuinely felt happiness."
"Thus—I began observing that world's future—and soon discovered a soul that had accidentally detached from its world… drifting into the formless chaos."
"From it—I obtained answers to certain questions. As equitable exchange—I granted it one wish."
"Since then—in the world I originally created… a new life emerged—one that should not have existed."
"And you, My——friend?"
"Your existence has indeed created more variables for this world… steering its once-fixed future toward new possibilities."
Hearing this—Aiden's expression shifted from initial impatience to sheer astonishment. He blurted out instinctively:
"So—this is how I transmigrated?!"
He suddenly understood why Arceus had built up so much preamble.
Had He stated it outright—even alpaca-Him wouldn't have fully believed His words—
Now—all mysteries were unraveled.
His transmigration wasn't merely "related" to Arceus—it was delivered by Him!
Arceus's Chosen One… was actually myself?!
As for why Arceus departed this world—the reason now seemed clear:
As long as He existed within any world… its future would become fixed. Thus He had to leave the world He cherished——
Quite tragic.
Aiden couldn't help but think.
"No need for concern. For Me—to witness ever more futures exceeding expectations… is already sufficiently fascinating."
Arceus's voice drifted gently.
"Moreover—the story I wish to share remains unfinished."
Aiden promptly closed his mouth—quietly awaiting Arceus's continued "storytelling."
The next focus should be why he lost his memories—and mistakenly believed himself a transmigrator.
Honestly—he'd vaguely sensed this before—but the conjecture seemed too absurd to pursue.
"Because of your existence… the entire Sinnoh region underwent subtle changes. The world appears to be gradually progressing toward a better state."
"Yet——I can sense it."
"Though you've arrived in the Pokémon world you long yearned for—and forged new bonds here… you do not seem truly happy."
"Thus—after employing certain means to reestablish contact with you… you made a second wish."
"You wished to forget unpleasant past events… and experience this world anew as a 'transmigrator'."
"And I fulfilled your wish. Nothing more."
"Unpleasant events—?"
Aiden felt a pang of concern.
As expected—it should be his parents' accident while deeply exploring Area Zero.
No wonder his "transmigration" coincided with that moment—such a casual reason?
But upon reflection—if he'd truly lived with his parents for over a decade in this life… facing such tragedy might indeed make him choose escape.
For some reason—Aiden suddenly felt a deep sadness.
Yet at that moment—
Arceus's voice returned.
"Now—I have fulfilled your second wish."
"And as equitable exchange… it is my turn to state My desire."
?
Me—fulfill Arceus's wish?
Aiden instinctively pointed at himself—expression turning awkward.
"You're not joking, right?!"
"I am quite serious. And this is something only you can accomplish."
Arceus's tone carried rare, ambiguous emotion.
"When I departed the original universe… I did not yet comprehend emotion. Thus I overlooked certain creations' feelings."
"And now—after witnessing countless world-ending tragedies caused by them…I must admit——"
"I regret it."
"I regret not leaving an explanation… and regret not treating them more gently—so they might feel greater belonging to the world… guiding the origin world toward a more beautiful future together."
"Therefore—as exchange for fulfilling your wish… I entrust My regret to you."
"I believe… you can accomplish this."
As Arceus finished speaking—Aiden's vision whited out once more. His consciousness briefly crashed—just as before.
Simultaneously—a strangely familiar text fragment materialized in his mind:
[Since you dare call yourself Arceus's Chosen One… you should understand that without corresponding attitude, you cannot earn that Lord's recognition.]
[Yet that benevolent Lord not only refrained from judging you… but even entrusted you with a magnificent mission.]
[Go forth—encounter more of His creations… and forge bonds with them. So that even in the world after that Lord's departure… they may forever live joyfully.]
[If possible… fulfill one wish on His behalf for each of them.]
[The so-called 'Path of Legends'… now truly begins~]
[Also——even if just a little more respect… please stop calling Him 'alpaca' in the future?]
[New quest automatically triggered: Path of Legends · Ultimate]
[Path of Legends · Ultimate: Encounter every one of His creations… and fulfill one wish for each if possible.]
[Reward: Arceus's Approval]
[Current Progress: None]
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